Paper Faces On Parade
by RisingMercury
Summary: One-shot. From Ashley's dark perspective, a small commentary on the hiding lies of those who surround her. Reviews are very much appreciated.


I'm finally back with another one-shot after a short burst of inspiration last night. It might not be well liked, seeing as its based on the Ash a lot of people do not like. But that's ok. This is Season 3 Ash. Forget everything you know about Season 4 Ash, wind back the clock to around _I Want Candy_. It's definitely darker writing and not so much fluffy.

Also, lyrics from the Masquerade song (Phantom of the Opera) have been incorporated into the very writing. So any bold italics you may see, those are lyrics sprinkled here and there. They are not in the order in which they appear in the song, lol. I've mixed and mingled them to reinforce a certain point. Other than that, enjoy and any feedback would be very much appreciated. Even if you didn't like it. I wrote this more for myself than anything else, lol but constructive criticism is always, always welcomed!:-) Thanks!

A/N: Also, special thanks to Jamie for basically giving me the inspiration I needed to finish this. You're awesome Jamie and your opinion always means a lot to me! And of course, to my dear little Frances, who was there to encourage me and push me to keep writing even when I didn't think I could do it. I love you both very much! Thanks for all the wonderful motivation, guys!

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Palpitating hearts hide lies tonight. It's time for Degrassi's very own "Masquerade" dance, and guess who's first in line to cover her face? The cold plastered masks concealing the fears and deceit of its owner. **_Masquerade! Paper faces on parade . . ._**I must admit, Liberty is a genius for having created this lucid theme. It's an exquisite exhibition of faceless dispositions and menacing smiles. All haunting and jeering. Like second nature, we take to disappearing behind a manmade expression. **_Masquerade! Every face a different shade . . ._**So we gather around now, with the melodious music sifting between us like our very own sirens--intoxicating us deeper into our world of make-belief.

**_Masquerade! Look around - there's another mask behind you! _**Tonight we all drown in a sea of masked faces. We all stand as equals now. Paige Michalchuk and Marco Del Rossi no longer exist. Simply veiled faces with eyes that pierce through. Eyes that swallow you whole in a single glance. Eyes that know no name. They're everywhere…all looking…all penetrating.**_ Masquerade! Leering satyrs, peering eyes. Masquerade! Run and hide - but a face will still pursue you!_** It is a rather vibrant showcase of broken down people, of interconnecting bruises that are now covered up perfectly with these masks.

Our identities prove consumed by the black and white paint on our masks. We all have secrets to disguise. With tightly sealed lips, they arrive…one by one, Degrassi's finest all mixed and intertwined in a twisted knot. Tonight I do not have to deal with Craig Manning. I do not have to think and cringe at the thought of Manny's disdainful hands upon him. Tonight I do not have to deal with Liberty breathing down my neck. Tonight I do not have to be perfect…and most importantly, tonight, Ashley Kerwin does not exist to the world. **_Masquerade! Hide your face, so the world will never find you! _**

Tonight, those that have been hurt and those who hurt blend together in a beautiful puddle of glittering facades. **_Eye of gold, thigh of blue, true is false, but who is who?_** Greedy grins and sardonic smirks creep from behind the gray shadows of each crooked corner. But tonight I join the crowd and become just as faceless as them. I coyly smile back at the sea of insincerity staring back at me. It is a night of enchanting deceits and colorful pretenses. **_Masquerade! Burning glances, turning heads. Masquerade! Stop and stare at the sea of smiles around you!_** **_  
_**

And they lift their plastic red cups, filled to the brim with crimson punch, in an attempt to drown the sorrows once felt.**_ Drink it in, drink it up, till you've drowned, in the light . . .in the sound. _**I watch as a stranger by my side slips illicit alcohol into their condemned fruit punch. His crystal blue eyes slowly lift to meet mine. A small sneer creeps from the corners of his mouth as he offers his tainted drink to me. Arched eyebrows meet my gaze and I've already succumbed to his games before they've even commenced. I take the drink in my hands and pour the burning liquid down my throat, igniting a million flames of revulsion for the tauntingly spinning masks revolving me. All contemptuously beaming at the torn imperfections imbedded within me. The stranger licks his mesmerizing, pouty lips and I accept his challenge. My hand impulsively grasps his wrinkled collar and we dart into the dim hallway of unspoken decadence. His hands voraciously roam over me but I do not feel inclined to stop him. They slowly and passionless inch up my thigh but under the circumstances tonight, its easier to give into the alluring temptations than to fight them. We are both but hiding souls searching for provisional satisfaction.

I've kissed these thirsty lips before…_Sean?_

I tear myself from his hasty kiss. I should have recognized those eyes. Those eyes that silently reveal vulnerability. **_Masquerade! You can fool any friend who ever knew you!_** Sean Cameron. Shame on you, Sean. What would Ellie say if she were here? If Ellie were here, she would have never been caught dead at one of these dances. She would have flashed her sarcastic smile, lackadaisically rolled her eyes at me and told me to forget it all. Perhaps if she were here now, things would be different. But she's not here and we are. We are both here for the same foolish reason—to revel in the scintillating fantasy around us and _live again_. To cease being an elaborate showcase of cuts and bruises.

A sudden vile distaste intensifies and I loathe him with every fiber in my very selfish being. I loathe him for thoughtlessly throwing his life away and I loathe her for leaving like she did. For leaving behind her fingerprints on everything we touch. Suddenly I cannot stand the grating mask upon my face any longer. **_Masquerade! Seething shadows, breathing lies. _**I kiss him hard on the lips one last time before I snatch the wretched cup out of his clumsily drunken hands and swallow the remnants of the despicable drink. His glazed bloodshot eyes disclose his extraordinary level of alcohol in his polluted blood system. He's far too gone to even realize who I am. He leans in to rob me of another passionless kiss but instead finds himself pushed fiercely back against the wall.

And I no longer can stand the disgusting stench of our intoxicated breaths or the bleeding lies we hide behind it all. A quick exit out of this hypnotizing hell is the only way out. And as I run out and leave all the spinning masks behind, I realize…some will always be nothing more than ill-fated paper faces on parade.


End file.
